Primorskoe Highway, 309, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 197706
"The Elephant" and its neighbors (the "Sestroretsky Line" complex).
On the northern outskirts of the suburb of Sestroretsk near St. Petersburg is the exhibition complex "Sestroretsky Line," which features numerous examples of fortification structures used in this area during the Great Patriotic War.
This section of the military border has a special reputation: the fortified district proved to be the most resilient in the face of the enemy and, despite numerous assaults in 1941, never surrendered to the enemy army. Visiting the memorial complex near Sestroretsk will be interesting not only to military history enthusiasts. The staff of the complex constantly update the exhibits and work on detailed reconstruction of the entire area. Today, it is an open-air museum: visitors can see more than ten exhibits, including two reinforced concrete firing points brought to the complex from the Beloostrov district and from Mednoye Lake, an observation tower from 1938, a Finnish machine gun armored cupola, the Izhora tower, and the tower of a KV-1 tank. The centerpiece of the exhibition is the artillery semi-caponier APK-1 (callsign "Elephant"), built in the late 1930s and part of the Sestroretsk defense district of the Karelian fortified region (KaUR).
The museum is "people's," i.e., created and maintained by the efforts of enthusiasts. So, first about the semi-caponier APK-1. It is a powerful long-term reinforced concrete structure, armed with two guns in casemate mounts (as well as having several embrasures for machine guns) and equipped with everything necessary for autonomous existence. Initially, APK-1, along with other KaUR structures, was intended to defend the nearby USSR border with Finland. But after the Soviet-Finnish "Winter War," the border was pushed back, and KaUR seemed no longer needed. However, during the Great Patriotic War, it had to fight. After the war, APK-1 was rearmed and modernized.
Over time, the complex plans to fully restore all military structures on the territory: wooden-earth, armored, and concrete firing points. Besides military facilities, the staff have recreated the everyday life of soldiers in field conditions. After all, war is also human life, with its joys and sorrows; even in harsh times, people communicate, make friends, believe, and dream. One can imagine someone drinking hot tea during a lull, someone rereading a worn-out letter from loved ones, someone writing home that everything is fine, alive and well, omitting the terrible details of military actions so that their family does not worry, and someone simply dreaming of peace. The museum also houses search finds and exhibits telling about the USSR's participation in other wars. The "Sestroretsky Line" is located at the 37th kilometer of Primorsky Highway and is open for visits on the third Sunday of each month.
The museum also houses search finds and exhibits telling about the USSR's participation in other wars. The "Sestroretsky Line" is located at the 37th kilometer of Primorsky Highway and is open for visits on the third Sunday of each month.
Source:
https://kudago.com/spb/place/sestroreckij-rubezh/
https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/22-й_Карельский_укреплённый_район
Preobrazhenskoye SNT, 22, Preobrazhenskoye SNT, Leningradskaya, Russia, 188839
Moskovskaya St., 5, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 196601
7X3J+XC Pebbles, Leningrad Oblast, Russia
54490, Hostikantie 28, 54490 Lappeenranta, Finland
Memorial Complex Myasnoi Bor, M-10, 1941, Myasnoi Bor, Novgorod Region, Russia, 173503
Kondratyevsky Ave, 42, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 195197
